Dr. Dr. Walter v. Lucadoulecture:Anomalous Experiences and Mental Health
The growing complexity, opaqueness and specialization of many areas of life and – above all – a booming psychological and esoteric market create the necessity for counselling and advice for individuals who encounter so-called "paranormal" experiences. These anomalous experiences are often interpreted as "transpersonal" or "spiritual" , depending on the cultural background and religious traditions. Mainstream psychiatry is still inclined to consider them as "psychotic" experiences. Paranormal experiences, regardless of their acceptance of academic psychology and psychiatry, are still a taboo subject in society. The Parapsychological Counselling Office in Freiburg is a professional unit with governmental support, which helps individuals to cope with such experiences adequately. The work and responsibilities of the counselling centre are presented. A large collection of cases in the form of letters, which were sent in by individuals wanting to communicate their unusual or extraordinary experiences have been analysed. Some of the results will be reported. Finally, a theoretical model is discussed which tries to explain both the experiences and the reaction on the treatements which are typically offered at the esoteric market. The recommendations of the model seem counter-intuitive but are ultimately successful. The model starts from a system-theoretical viewpoint and uses concepts such as complementarity and entanglement of generalized quantum theory (GQT) and the model of pragmatic information (MPI). Since it turned out that individuals who contact the counselling centre also offer their own interpretations and "explanation" , the question arises, how these resources can be used to help clients.